Spring-board holder.



G. E. ROHMER.

SPRING BOARD HOLDER.

APPLIGATIOH FILED AUG. 2, 1912. RENEWED SEPT. 22, 1914. 1,126,087.

Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

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TlNTTED STATES PATENT @FFTQE.

GABRIEL n. ROHMER, on NEW YORK, N. Y., assrenon TO J. FRANCIS BOORAEM, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 26, 1915..

Application filed August 2, 1912, Serial No. 712,921. Renewed September 22, 1914. Serial No. 863,006.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GABRIEL E. ROHMER, a citizen of the United States, residing in Woodside, borough of Queens, in the city of New York, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spring-Board Holders, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide a holder for spring-boards, adjustable to the thickness of board to be held, and permitting adjustment of the board in the holder so that the board may be at any predetermined point in its length.

The invention consists of a spring-board holder comprising a base, adapted tobe secured to any suitable support, and means for clamping the board in position on the base.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a spring-board holder embodying my invention, showing the same in juxtaposition to the edge of a swimmingtank, the latter being partly shown in elevation and partly in vertical section. Fig. 2 is a side elevation, on a larger scale, of the holder with a spring-board therein, the board being broken away, and Fig. 3 is a front view of the holder and board shown in Fig. 2. 1

Similar reference numerals indicate corresponding parts.

The base 10 is adapted to be secured by expansion-bolts 12 through its side flanges 1 1, or by other means, to any suitable support, such as the concrete flooring 15 adjacent the swimming tank 16. A cap 11 is secured to the base 10 by bolts 17 passing through upper laterally-extending flanges 18 of the base 10 and lower laterally extending flanges 19 of the cap. The base 10 is of generally rectangular shape, and hollow, with openings in ends and sides, affording access to the interior of the base for cleaning and adjustment of parts. It is reinforced at the sides by vertical ribs 20. The bottom 21 of the base is preferably closed. The top 22 is provided with a median longitudinal slot, (not shown) extending for a portion of its length. The cap 11 is of inverted U-shape, the side-walls 24, 25 of which are braced by gussets 26 to the flanges 19, and are connected at the top by the top plate 27 of the cap. Said top plate 27 is inclined from the front downwardly toward the rear, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the walls 2-1, 25 being likewise of greater height at the front and inclining downward to the rear at which point they are however of suflicient height so as to support the top plate 27 above the top plate 22 of the base a distance somewhat in excess of the greatest thickness of board desired to be supported, so that such board may freely pass between the plate 22 and the top 27. The cap 11 is open at both ends, and provided in its side-walls with lateral openings for access. The upper outer surface of the cap is preferably checkered in the metal, or covered with a sheet of corrugated rubber, or cork composition, 30, affording a secure footing when wet, which preferably extends to a beveled portion 31 at the forward portion of the top plate 27. Said beveled portion is left uncovered to present by its difference of color and touch a dividing line so that the diver may readily know where the base ends and the board begins, and take his footing accordingly. It is beveled so as to afl'ord a broken-plane footing at the junction, and an easy run-off between the base and board.

The springboard 32 is supported at its underside and clamped against the underside of the top-plate 27 by means of a wedgeshaped shoe 33 which is located between the sidewalls 24, 25 and is guided by the same longitudinally of the base. Said shoe has its lower face 38 corresponding to the horizontal plane of the top-plate 22 of the base 10, and is supported and guided thereon, while its upper face is inclined at substantially the same pitch as and parallel with the top 27 of the base, and is located when the wedge is in rear-most position at a distance from said top approximately corresponding to the thickness of the thinnest spring-board used,say one inch. When in forward position, the wedge is so far removed from the top 27 as to permit the insertion and removal of the thickest springboard desired, say one and three-eighthsinches. The shoe is at its front end provided with a rounded nose 34 extending forward of the base, thereby giving bottomsupport to the board at a point forward of the base, and permitting the base to be set back from the tankedge the additional distance of the length of the nose, while still supporting the board. The nose is at its forward edge straight for a portion 35 of its distance at the center, but is rounded off toward the sides, as shown at 36, 37, so as to bring the spring-board at its median line first into tension, thereby giving a decreased initial tension, and placing the greatest strains at the middle of the board where they are best resisted. At its lower portion the shoe does not contact over its entire lower face with the plate 22 of the base, but either the plate 22, or the lower face 38 of the wedge, or both, are recessed as indicated at 39, A0, Fig. 3, said recesses extending longitudinally of the plate and shoe and over a considerable portion of the width of each, so that the shoe is supported adjacent its sides only on the base. This construction relieves the center of the base from pressure and brings the pressure of the wedge adjacent the reinforced sides of the base. The recesses also afford an escape for sand, grit, etc., from between the bearing surfaces of the base and shoe, which if retained would tend to tilt the wedge, causing it to unevenly and insecurely support the board, and bring fracturing strains upon the cap 11 and its bolts. The shoe 33 is provided with two depending lugs 40, in the slot of the plate 22, longitudinally of the same which carry between them a threaded nut 29, which is engaged by a screw 41 which is journaled at its rear end in the rear end of the base, and at its forward portion passes through the base and is journaled therein and secured against longitudinal movement by a collar 42 and by a handwheel or knob 48 secured to the front end of the screw outside of the base. By rotating the screw by means of its knob the shoe is moved lengthwise of the base, thereby when turned in rearward direction causing the shoe to wedge itself between the base and the board, and securely clamp and support the latter against the top 27, and, when turned in the other direction, moving the wedge forwardly from clamping position, thus releasing the board. The board when released slides freely in the device, and may be stopped and clamped at any desired point in its length.

A look screw 44 is supported in the base so as to hear at its inner end against the clamping-screw 4:1, and lock the same in the position to which it is adjusted, thereby preventing loosening of the clamping shoe accidentally or under vibration of the board, and securing at all times the reliable retaining of the clamping-shoe in the position in which it is set.

The pitch of the board maybe changed by detaching the cap and shoe from the lower base, and substituting therefor a cap and shoe of the desired pitch. This may be done without in any manner disturbing the lower base on its foundations.

The holder may be made of any suitable metal, such for example as bronze, and of any desired size.

It is obvious that changes may be made in the construction without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A springboard holder, comprising base, and means for longitudinally guiding a spring-board thereon and clamping said spring-board to said base.

2. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a cap thereon, adapted to receive a spring-board, and a wedge-shaped shoe adapted to clamp said spring-board to said cap.

3. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a cap thereon having an inclined portion, and adapted to receive a spring-board, and a shoe between said base and cap and having an inclined portion adapted to cooperate with the cap for clamping said spring-board.

4:. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a detachable cap thereon, adapted to receive a spring-board, and means for clamping said spring-board to said cap.

5. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a detachable cap thereon, adapted to receive a springboard, and a detachable shoe adapted to clamp said spring-board to said cap.

6. A springboard holder, comprising a base, a shoe guided horizontally thereon and having an inclined upper face, and an inclined cap secured to said base and extending over said shoe, I

7. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a cap, and a clamping shoe between the Base and cap and extending forward of the ase.

8. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a cap, and a clamping shoe between the base and cap and extending forward of the base, and provided at its extending portion with'a horizontally rounded front edge.

9. A spring-board holder, comprising a support having an unobstructed upper surface, and a space for receiving the board adjacent said surface, and means for detachably clamping said 'board in said space.

10. A spring-board holder, comprising a base, a cap, and a shoe guided on said base and having clamping cooperation with the cap, said base and shoe being recessed adj acent their bearing faces, and said shoe bearing adjacent its sides only on said base.

11. A springboard holder, comprising a base, a cap thereon, a longitudinally movable wedge-shaped shoe, guided on said base and adapted to clamp the spring-board to be heldagainst said cap, and an operating screw journaled in said base, and adapted to In testimony, that I claim the foregoing move said shoe to and from said cap. as my invention, I have signed my name in 12. A spring-board holder, comprising a presence of two subscribing Witnesses. base, a cap thereon having a beveled front GABRIEL E. ROHMER. 5 portion, means for clamping a spring-board Witnesses:

against said cap, and a footing 011 said cap C. P. GOEPEL, back of said beveled portion. M. A. DILLON.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

